Mental health needs a national plan to guide reforms

Tonight’s Budget includes a number of welcome new initiatives for mental health, but leaves ongoing uncertainty about how current reforms will be coordinated and integrated.

“Following tonight’s Budget, Australia still has no comprehensive plan to guide the very significant reforms changing the shape of mental health services,” said Mental Health Australia CEO Frank Quinlan.

“Programs like the NDIS, Primary Health Networks, and Health Care Homes are welcome measures, but urgent work is required to link these reforms to ongoing mental health reforms, and to services providing psychosocial support to people who experience mental illness.”

Welcome initiatives in tonight’s Budget include:

New $40m investment in veteran’s mental health and suicide prevention $800K for an online service to address perinatal depression $750m investment in Youth Jobs PaTH services to train and employ vulnerable young Australians $100m for trials in innovative programs aimed at reducing long-term welfare dependency

Measures in tonight’s Budget that could negatively impact people who experience mental illness and their carers include:

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Cuts to payments for new welfare recipients accessing NewStart, Disability Support Pension (DSP) and Carer payment Uncertainty regarding the re-assessment of 90,000 DSP recipients Ongoing pause in indexation of the Medicare Benefits Scheme affecting GPs and allied health professionals Cuts to Health Flexible Funds, with details to be confirmed in the future

Mental Health Australia has renewed its call for a ten-year plan for mental health reform.

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